– South East Asia Times is reporting that the man killed in the Indonesian government’s raid in central Java is not Noordin Mohammed Top. The government will compare the DNA of the corpses of the man suspected of being Top to one of Top’s children, which may take up to two weeks. This may be futile; an anonymous police source stated that the corpse’s fingerprints do not match Top’s. Meanwhile, new information on the second suspect, currently in custody, Yayan (a.k.a. Suryana -Gepeng), is said not to have been an employee Gran Melia Hotel, as previously reported.
– The New York Times is reporting that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, was sentenced to three years hard labor on Tuesday, but the sentence was commuted to a maximum of 18 months of house arrest, which will be a continuation of the house arrest she has already been under for the last 14 years. Many analyst believe the sentence is intended to keep Suu Kyi from participating in next years elections, which could be a compromise. Some believe the sentence was light due to international pressure, even if true, these actions will likely sour the Junta’s relations with the West. Previously, I wrote that it might not be prudent for the West, especially the United States, to tether relations with Myanmar to Aung San Suu Kyi’s dilemma.
– Two Burmese defectors claim that Myanmar is developing nuclear weapons technology with the aid of North Korea. U.S. Secretary of State Clinton stated her concern over the relationship at the last ASEAN Summit. Myanmar is a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which binds it to give proper notification to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) before bringing a nuclear facility online. Although ASEAN has threatened to expel Myanmar if the speculation over its nuclear strategy is true, earlier in the month ASEAN president, also Thai Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva rejected U.S. calls to eject the nation from the group.
– The Malaysian government is considering the use of internet censors, in what the information minister claims, is an effort to protect citizens from online pornography. This sounds very similar to what China was considering, but “postponed” after intense public protest. Many in the government opposition and Malaysian netizen community believe that the ruling coalition fears the internet. Unlike the traditional media, the government does not directly or indirectly have control over internet content. As a result, the internet has become a place get news that is damaging to the government, especially Prime Minister Najib Razak. The government could be ready to role out the filters by 2010, right as Malaysia new broadband network goes live. The article also explores how this newly proposed “soft authoritarianism” could hurt Malaysia’s economic reforms.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
